Africa in Motion

Our exhibition this year consists of a unique collection of photographs revealing the world of filmmaking behind the scenes - catching those unguarded moments within the production and post-production stages, on and off the film set. African Cinema Behind the Scenes captures the often unseen journey of cinema from story development to location scouting, to rehearsals and seeing stars, crew and directors at work! The images included in this exhibition are all photographs taken from films included in our 2016 festival programme.

This year we are moving outside of the city centre, packing our Nomad Cinema and heading to Paisley. Join us for this one-off day of fun with films, crafts, bake sales, fashion shows, storytelling and many more diverse events for everyone to enjoy. This programme has been curated in collaboration with the people of Paisley, through Pachedu and Create Paisley.

Our pop-up festivals in East Lothian and Paisley are supported by Regional Screen Scotland.

Family Friendly Craft Making
Sat 29 Oct at 11.45am-1.30pm
Free entry

Try your hand at some craft making while biting into a homemade dessert from our bake sale.

Khumba
Anthony Silverston | South Africa | 2013 | 1h25m | U

Sat 29 Oct at 12pm
Free entry

Sarafina!
Darrell Roodt | South Africa 1992 | 1h35m | English/isiZulu with English subtitles | 15

Sat 29 Oct at 3pm
Free entry

African Cafe
Sat 29 Oct at 5-6.45pm
Free Entry

Relax with a few African tasty treats while enjoying the musical stylings of a local band.

Action Kommandant - UK Premiere
Nadine Angel Cloete | South Africa | 2016 | 1h30m | Afrikaans/English with English subtitles | Documentary | 15

Sat 29 Oct at 7pm
Free entry

Open Mic Night
29 Oct at 9-10:30pm
Free entry

Bring your guitar or just bring yourself and show us what you got at our open mic night.

Supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, this year Africa in Motion Film Festival and the Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights (CRER) worked in partnership to develop a young programmers project entitled ‘Reviving Scotland’s Black History’. We brought together five young aspiring film programmers from different backgrounds to take part in lectures, walking tours, site visits and seminars exploring black heritage in Scotland and the UK. Through this project they discovered Scotland’s links to slavery, through for example Glasgow’s architecture, learnt about the various race riots that have taken place in Scotland from 1916 onwards as well as about Scottish activism against racism.

From the knowledge they acquired the young programmers were then tasked with programming four events taking place during Africa in Motion Film Festival and Black History Month. These screenings and events are inspired by what they learnt, combined with their own life experiences and passions.

Africa in Motion’s annual Short Film Competition has been successfully running for nine consecutive years. This year, the shortlist was selected from over 250 entries, which is a record in AiM’s history. African filmmakers were invited to submit short films of up to 30 minutes, and the final shortlist comprises a diverse and captivating collection of work from across the continent.

The Short Film Competition is part of AiM’s commitment to nurturing young African filmmaking talent. The winner is selected by our jury of acclaimed film practitioners and academics and will be announced immediately after the screenings. The audience will also have the opportunity to vote for their favourite film with the Audience Award winner announced on our website at the end of the festival.

Our thanks go to the African Movie Channel for sponsoring this award.

Short Film Jury Members

Yvonne Dublin-Green, Channel Manager at African Movie Channel
Maimouna Doucure, Winner of last years Short Film Competition
Przemek Stepien, Artistic Director of AfryKamera
Sarah Dawson, former Manager at the Durban International Film Festival and has worked for various festivals such as Sheffield DOC/FEST and Africa in Motion

This package of specially curated short films looks at LGBTQ+ themes and tell stories from across the African continent - including stories of sexual identity, relationships and discrimination from Zimbabwe, Ghana, South Africa and Nigeria. The films within this programme aim to give a greater understanding of the identities and the struggle for acceptance of queer people and communities in contemporary Africa. Curated by Jo Reid.

This event is part of the Reviving Scotland's Black History programme. 

Women still make up only 16% of all directors, producers, writers, cinematographers and editors world-wide. Against the backdrop of this striking under-representation, this event will consider the role of women in a world of film. An afternoon symposium will include discussions by female experts working in the film and television industries, discussing issues such as funding, training, distribution, production and storytelling. The symposium will be followed by a wine reception and a screening of Tunisian female-directed film As I Open My Eyes.

You can book to attend either the symposium or screening, or for both parts.

Programme:

2-2.30pm: Arrival, registration and welcome
2.30-3.30pm: Panel 1 - Women's Stories
3.30-4pm: Coffee/tea break
4-5pm: Panel 2 - Women's Opportunities
5-6pm: Wine reception
6-8pm: Screening of As I Open My Eyes

Following the success of our annual Short Film Competition, Africa in Motion launched a brand new Documentary Competition strand last year. African filmmakers were invited to submit documentaries of 30 minutes or more, and the final shortlist was selected from a wide range of fascinating entries from across the continent, covering varied themes.

The Documentary Competition aims at encouraging and supporting talented African documentary filmmakers. The winner is selected by our jury of acclaimed film practitioners and academics and will be announced after the screenings on the second day. The audience will also have the opportunity to vote for their favourite film, with the Audience Award announced on our website at the end of the festival.

Our thanks go to the Scottish Documentary Institute for sponsoring this award.

Documentary Jury Members

Noe Mendelle, Director of Scottish Documentary Institute, Film & TV
Daniel Nyalusi, Assistant Festival Director of ZIFF
Tebeho Edkins, Winner of last years Documentary Competition
Kinsi Abdulleh, Numbai Arts
Darryl Els, Festival Director of Encounters

The life of a film often depends on its migration to other lands and its translation into other languages in order for it to be seen widely. This collection of short films considers concepts and feelings of geographical dislocation represented on the screen, by looking at the migrant’s physical movement, the dystopian futures that lie ahead and the state of being ‘lost in translation’ when away from home.

In an attempt to maintain order, the 1934 Laval Decree sought to control all images of Africa and French colonialism, giving the French authorities the right to refuse anyone permission to film in the colonies. Shot between 1950 and 1970, these three short films are of immense historical and aesthetic importance. From the first French anti-colonial film to the first documentary shot by African filmmakers south of the Sahara, Colonising the image explores through film the relationship between France and (colonial) Africa.

The screenings will be followed by a panel discussion with Professor Michael Syrotinski, Dr Mathilde von Bülow  and Professor David Murphy, all scholars working in postcolonial studies.

Curated by Alasdair Campbell.

This year’s Nollywood Red Carpet Premiere Double Bill is part of the BFI´s Black Star season, a celebration on the range, versatility and power of black actors on film and television. Black Star provides a meaningful and high-profile platform for audiences to explore a galaxy of black actors. For more information on the Black Star season please go to bfi.org.uk/blackstar.

The evening will run as follows:

5.00pm - 6.00pm: Arrival and red carpet
6.00pm - 7.30pm: Screening of The Road to Yesterday
7.30pm - 8.30pm: Drinks reception
8.30pm - 10.00pm: Screening of The CEO

Dress code: Formal

Ticket price for one film: £12
Ticket price for both films: £16
Tickets include film screenings, glass of prosecco and canapé reception.